You stayed curled up with your cheeks to your knees long after his heavy footsteps faded down the hall. Was it true? No, it... wasn't? What he said was right, so why did it hurt so much to hear? Do I really treat them like my therapist? You absentmindedly picked at the end of your pants. Does this stupid shit not matter? It matters to me... but I seem to care about a lot of useless crap. No, it's just what this one guy says... whose opinion you trust, unfortunately. Maybe it's just his opinions talking? No, well, maybe. I'll be fine. No, I won't be fine and I feel terrible and I can't do this- NO! Thinking that way is a choice, no matter how impulsive it is, damn it! It never ends well, so just... stop. You relaxed your shoulders. I can grow from this. I know now that despite how it feels right now, I'll be okay. I'm strong and I work well under pressure... I think. We'll find out soon. Okay. Are we okay? We'll see. Wipe up your tears, maggot. You let out a small huff as a tentative smile creeped its way onto your lips. Using your shirt, you wiped your tears away and stretched your legs out. You stretched downward and imagined your emotions washing away down a drain.

Then, you stood up and stretched the rest of your body. I am okay. This needs to be a conscious choice not to let what Engineer said affect me. It isn't a conscious choi- Well! I'm making it one. You made your way to your bathroom and washed your face. You were careful with the soap this time, but it only reminded you about the last time you cleaned your face after crying. Well, the past doesn't matter. I mean, the past as a whole matters to learn about our history, but things change. What Engineer did then was certainly not what he did now. That means he has it in him to be both of those people. Nice to know. You dried yourself off and studied your face in the mirror. See? We may have bags, bitch, but we still look good. You shook your hair and smiled, clutching it in your hands before letting it drop. We're cute!

You turned and glanced up and down your body, smiling. What's funny, is if this happened like two days earlier, this would be going differently. Sure, if Engineer doesn't want to hear about my problems- as he puts it -then fine. I still have other people to talk to. A sudden desire to change your shirt had you switching your tear-stained shirt for a new one. You gently put it on and slapped your stomach for no reason, laughing. You checked the time and saw it was 4:48 PM. I should really do some school work. You sat in your chair in the most dramatic way possible just to please yourself, smiling as you turned the computer on. You know? The more I think about it, I should be the one feeling sorry for Engineer. I don't know what he's going through to make him lash out like that, but maybe... maybe he'll want to talk about it.

About two hours into your study-sesh neck-deep in the metrical feet of a poem and your music playlist, you hear knocks at your door. Thankfully, you had just figured out what an iambic tetrameter is, so you felt ready for the test. Granted, the test was in two days, but it's okay! You weren't as stressed out as you could've been. You triumphantly closed your computer screen and skipped over to the door. You opened it without skipping a beat and found Engineer with his mouth partly open as if he was about to say something. You smiled wavered slightly seeing him, but he clamped his mouth shut and let his expression become sour and closed off. Sure, you weren't exactly expecting it so it caught you off guard, but that's okay.

"Dinner's ready," Engineer reported and walked off before you could respond. You nodded at his back and gently closed your bedroom door behind you. You followed Engineer at a distance and made your way to the kitchen. Smelling the food made you realize you forgot to eat lunch, and you picked up the pace to the line. Entering the kitchen you discovered whoever cooked set up a "make your own sandwich" kind of deal. You hurried to get in line, and Scout followed close behind.

"Heya, Strats!" Scout greeted you. "Anythin' interesting happen?" You impulsively flinched, but mentally shook it off. Still, you couldn't help but glance over at Engineer. He turned your way before snapping back to his plate. I don't want to start anything.

"If you count school work as interesting, Scout," you laughed as Scout's expression looked as if he was seeing war flashbacks.

"Uh, sure." Scout blinked rapidly while shaking his head. "Dat's...dat's good! Good job, Strats." He clapped your back and you laughed again, smiling and purposefully avoiding looking at Engineer.

"Thanks Scout," you grabbed a plate and started putting your sandwich together.

"Yeah, no problem!" Scout got himself a plate as well, grabbing as much of the chicken as he could hold. He plopped it on his sandwich and furrowed his brow at it for a second before sighing slightly. "Hey Strats... did ya want to do anythin' after dinna? 'Cause.." he leaned down closer to you, lowering his voice. "I heard what da Engineer said to ya. You sure you're okay?" You turned to look at him.

"Honestly? I don't really know how to feel about it." Or really how to tell you about it, honestly. Scout leaned back, his expression laced with concern.

"But, you're okay?"

"Yeah, don't worry about me." You nudged him slightly with your elbow and laughed. "If I were you, I would be more worried about the chicken sliding off of your plate right now." Scout looked down and yelped, catching the runaway chicken with his hand before it fell on the floor. He laughed and gave you a goofy face before sitting down at his seat. I'm glad he cares about me.

"Leetle girl," Heavy spoke behind you. You turned around and cocked your head to the side. "How is school work?" He was standing in a commanding way, and it almost had you intimidated. You did have to look up a fair bit to make eye contact with him after all.

"Oh! It's going really well. Why did you ask?" You asked, really hoping nothing stupid would happen.

"We lift weights after dinner," he stated and promptly turned around to sit at his seat by Medic.

"Um, o-okay..." Weird, but I guess I have time for it.

You grabbed a glass of water and made your way to your seat... by Engineer. Fuck. What do I do now? I said I was fine and I believed it, but now I might... I don't know! You looked back and forth. Thankfully Engineer had his head lowered, his hat on the table next to his plate. What do I do? You took another glance, wondering how weird it would be to just walk off, but you caught Medic's eye. He raised his eyebrows slightly and winked, making you giggle slightly. How did this happen? It gave you the strength to sit down as normally as you could muster next to Engineer. He turned his head to look at you, but moved his head back while shaking it. Oh geez... I can't even figure out if I want to be upset or feel empowered or something.

During the meal, Demo entertained everybody with his own version of comedy routine, which included mostly cracking at Scout. Thankfully, Scout took jokes like "Ya look as scrawny as the chicken ya eat at night!" and even shot a few back at Demo. The overall mood of the meal was lighthearted, but you couldn't help but notice how Engineer didn't look up once during the whole thing. He was the first to finish as well, standing up and putting his dirty plate away. As he walked back, he made eye contact with you. Unfortunately, you couldn't tell if he was glaring at you or just staring blankly thanks to the goggles. A shiver creeped up your spine, but you kept the eye contact with him, even lifting your eyebrow slightly. It seemed to surprise him, because his eyebrows lifted and he quickly grabbed his hat and left. I bet your pupils dilated...what in the nine circles did I just think? You smiled to yourself and laughed when Scout seemed to get fed up and throw a chicken at Demo. He thankfully took Scout's hint despite the throw missing Demo's head entirely. The whole table erupted in laughter as people stood up and put their plates away.

"Uh hey, do ya know where shorty went?" Scout asked, still chuckling.

"Oh, he left a bit ago. I don't know where, but he's probably in his room," you answered.

"Yeah, I was thinkin' of havin' a little talk with 'im, but not right now though. Gotta run!" Scout started to jog off.

"Wait!" You remembered something.

"Yeah?" You pointed to the piece of chicken slumped against the wall.

"You need to clean up the chicken you sucked at throwing."

"Low blow, Strats." You both laughed as Scout jogged past you to clean up his mess.

You felt a presence loom over you, so you turned around to find Heavy only a few feet behind you.

"Is it time to go?" You asked, surprisingly not uncomfortable with it.

"Da," Heavy nodded, waving for you to follow him as he walked off.

"Should I change at all?" You hurried after him.

"Take shower after."

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"Alright then."

In silence, Heavy led you to the Training Facility outside. Once there, he led you inside and to the left where a tiny gym was set up. Granted, there was only a set of weights, but still.

"Now," Heavy crossed his arms over his broad chest. "It is time to warm up."

"What do I do?" He seemed to think for a moment as if caught off guard by your question.

"Jumping jacks. Go." He said it so calmly, you weren't sure what to do for a moment, but started them before Heavy opened his mouth again.

"How many do I do?" You said in between breaths.

"Just go. Do not think." Yes sir? In awkward silence, Heavy watched you do jumping jacks under an intense gaze. After roughly a minute, you started slowing down. You took a glance at Heavy and noticed his brows furrowing. You sped back up, and he nodded. "Good. You run lap if you slow down." Oh God no. After nearly another minute, Heavy put his hand up to stop and you could already feel a burn. Why am I so weak?

"What now?"

"One hundred push-ups. Go." Really? You got into form and started them.

"Do I have to do this alone?" You smirked, starting to breathe heavily. Heavy grumbled slightly as you felt him lower down to the ground. You laughed slightly as he started doing push-ups next to you.

"Laugh again and you do one hundred more," Heavy grunted through his teeth. Needless to say, it shut you up despite holding back another laugh. About ten in, you wanted to accept your fate and die. "Do not slow down!" You yelped, not realizing Heavy was keeping an eye on you. You heard him laugh at you. My body hates meee. Once you two were done, you fell back on your back while panting like a dog. Heavy stood up breathing heavily through his nose. "Up." You got up, your arms still shaking with the consistency of a noodle.

"Wha-What's next?" You asked, afraid of the answer. Heavy handed you a large, heavy ball.

"Hold this and squat." He got his own ball and started squatting with you. "Do One hundred fifty." If it weren't for the ball, you probably could have done this. However, your legs hated you as much as your arms by the time you finished.

"I'm afraid to ask what's next. My legs hate me." You laughed while Heavy took the ball back.

"They will hate you more. It is time to run." Heavy walked outside and had you followed him. Every step was shaky, and your legs were so beaten up, you could barely feel them as you walked.

"Oh yayyy...." You stood at the starting line of the track, absolutely dreading all of what's about to come.

"Ready?"

"No!"

"I do not care! Go!" Heavy watched you take off. With every stride, you could feel yourself about to trip. Inevitably, you could feel yourself slowing down against your will. "What is leetle girl doing?" Heavy shouted at you.

"I don't know!" You were trying to speed up, but your body had enough already.

"Faster!"

"I'm trying!"

"Does leetle girl wish to run this slow in a fight?"

"Of course not!"

"Then run!" Heavy started chasing after you. A short scream erupted from your throat against your will as a new spark of adrenaline gave new life to your limp legs to run away from the bear of a man chasing after you. He chased you for five laps until you tripped and crashed on the ground. He caught up to you and scooped you up, a laugh bursting from his chest. "You did well!"

"T-thanks..." You wiped your cheek off, your own sweat making the scrape sting. You were secretly grateful he was carrying you back inside.

"This is basic workout. They will be harder, soon."

"Oh man..." You groaned, letting your head flop onto his shoulder. Still, you both laughed until you reached the main building. He set you down as you both entered the building.

"Go take shower, and take care of wound." Heavy left you to head to his room, and you did the same. As you closed the door behind you, you slumped to the ground.

"Well? How did it go?" Spy materialized leaning up against the wall next to you.

"Ah!" You jumped. "The one time I didn't check!"

"Yes yes, whatever. How was your workout with ze fat man?" You stared at the Frenchman in confusion for a second.

"If I answer, will you let me take a shower in peace?"

"Well, no. I came in 'ere to ask 'ou a question."

"Fine... It went well. I feel dead, I got banged up, but it's okay." You shrugged.

"Oh please, 'ou don't know half of what it's like to be dead." In response, you rolled your eyes.

"Was that your question, Spy?" You stood up, trying not to let your knees wobble in front of him.

"No. I wanted to ask about what happened with ze laborer."

"The Engineer?"

"Yes! Don't play dumb with me Strategist." Spy leaned in close to your face.

"Okay, please back up." When he didn't, you gently pushed him back with a finger. He huffed and leaned back against the wall. "Look, Engineer blew up at me. I don't know why, though."

"What did he say?"

"He mostly called me a baby and said that I shouldn't treat this place like a therapy office." Memories of the experience replayed in your mind, but right now it didn't really affect you.

"Zhat was rude."

"Sure. Can you please leave?"

"Are 'ou certain you do not know why ze man is acting strange?"

"Sorry. I don't."

"Very well. 'Ave a nice shower." Spy slipped out of your room.

"Gross..." You locked the door behind him and waved your hands around to make sure he didn't slip right back in. You took a long shower, being careful around your scrapes, but nevertheless getting as clean as possible. By the time you had gotten out and dressed in your pajamas, you heard another knock at the door. I swear to God if it's Spy again... You opened up the door to find Medic standing there.

"Oh, I didn't know zhis vas a slumber party," Medic whispered and laughed, gesturing to your fluffy clothing. He had a movie box in his hand and was dressed only without his lab coat.

"I'm comfortable!" You whispered back and laughed as well, stepping back to let Medic through. You shut the door silently, and pulled out your computer. "Still kept the tie on?" Medic looked down and slightly turned pink.

"Of course!" He handed you the disc and you slid it into your computer. You giggled slightly.

"So, what's this one called?"

"It's a surprise, haha!"

"Oh man. I can't wait!" You sat down on your bed with your blanket wrapped around you.

"Are jou not going to share?" Medic sat down beside you on your right as you handed him the other side to your blanket. "Zhank jou."

You both sat shoulder to shoulder as the movie pulled itself up. It was the Texas Chainsaw Massacre. You nudged Medic with your elbow and he smiled at you. You steadily got more and more tired as the movie played. You hadn't even met the famous killer when Medic asked you something.

"Strategist, do jou know vhat happened vith zhe Engineer?" He asked, glancing at your and then back at the screen. You groaned slightly and leaned against his shoulder.

"He... I don't know what happened to him. He blew up at me, and then I did school work," you stated, feeling exhaustion creep in.

"Vhat do jou mean 'blew up' at jou?"

"He just got really angry and shouted at me. I think he's tired."

"Vell, jou vouldn't be vrong. Vhy vould he do zhat?" You just shrugged in return, watching Leatherface beat down Kirk. "Are jou okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just don't know how to handle it other than just going with the flow and hoping he'll want to talk about it."

"Zhat's a good idea." You nodded.

"I just wish everything didn't have to be so full of drama. I just made up with you!" Medic chuckled slightly.

"Ve'll haff to see. He can't be mad forever."

"That's true I suppose..." As the movie continued, you felt yourself get more and more scared as it went on. Paranoia latched onto your neck and your eyes bulged at the screen. As brother and sister walked through the dark forest on their way to find their friends, the guy told the girl to stop. He shone the flashlight to his right as Leatherface popped out of the trees with a chainsaw. You yelped and grabbed Medic's arm like a teddy bear as he put his hand over your mouth.

"Don't be such a baby!" He hissed, smiling sadistically. You had a memory of uneasiness prickle through you, but pushed it aside. It isn't like that anymore!

"Sorry..." you apologized while still muffled. He raised an eyebrow and slowly removed his hand.

"I didn't zhink jou vould be scared of zhat." Medic taunted you, poking your nose.

"Hey! It just caught me off guard!" Medic chuckled at you.

"Who knew jou could be caught off guard?" You elbowed Medic as he laughed, not letting go of his arm.

"Are jou going to let go?"

"No, it's mine now."

"Well," Medic laughed. "I could remove it vith zhe bonesaw! I vouldn't be very quiet, zhough." You slowly turned to look at him with an expression you could only describe as "What the fuck, man?" Medic laughed a bit more, but kept it quiet. He didn't try to remove his arm from your grasp, and you happily held onto it. Eventually though, further into the movie, he did move it to wrap his arm around your shoulders. You used your left hand to hold onto his hand though, still terrified of the movie. He gently squeezed your hand during the scary parts.

Once the movie ended, you closed the laptop, but it seemed like neither of you wanted to move. You took your earbuds back and got up to plug in your computer. You took out the disc and turned it off. Handing the disc back to Medic, you sat back down on the bed. Medic put the disc in its box and leaned against the wall, sighing.

"Tired?" You asked him.

"Not as tired as jou are, (Y/n)," he chuckled.

"Probably, Dr. Ludwig." Medic's mouth became a thin line. "..Did I say something wrong?"

"No, no, jou're alright." Medic shook his head and laughed it off. "I vas thinking about how badly Leazherface stored zhe bodies."

"Really? I mean he hung them up on hooks like meat. He also kept that one girl in a freezer."

"Jes, but I vould have done better."

"I'm pretty sure you would." You leaned back up against him, relaxing. "Are you ready to head back to the MedBay?"

"Vhat if I don't vant to?" Medic teased you.

"Have fun with Spy finding you here!"

"Hey!" You both laughed. Medic sighed. "I should go, zhough. Gute nacht, Strategist." He stood up and walked to the door. As his hand grazed the handle, you rushed over to hug him from behind. He chuckled, turned around, and hugged you back.

"Good night, Medic." He waved and silently closed the door.

As you came back from the bathroom, you heard sharp knocks at your door. You walked over to it, expecting Medic and dreading it to be Spy. You opened it to reveal Engineer with his arms crossed.

"What in the Hell were you doin' with him?" He scowled.